project sea turtle hatchery community tourism development

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Project: Sea Turtle Hatcheryand Community Tourism Development

Partial report

Written for theHumane Society International

By

The Corcovado Foundation

Date:January 30, 2008


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Fundacin Corcovado Lon Willing Ramsey Junior, www.corcovadofoundation.org Telfono (506) 297-3013, Fax (506) 241-2906

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Table of Contents

Introduction:.................................................................................................................................... 3

Marine Turtle Conservation Project in El Progreso Beach Background: ....................................... 4

Project objectives and description: ................................................................................................. 6

Results and Outcomes..................................................................................................................... 7

1. Marine Turtle Conservation................................................................................................ 7

2. Hospitality Course .............................................................................................................. 7

3. English Lessons .................................................................................................................. 8

Future challenges for the project................................................................................................... 10


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Introduction:

The Corcovado Foundation was created by concerned neighbors of Corcovado National Park tolead the fight to stop illegal hunting and logging. We are a hands-on, down to earth local leaderin conservation, who works closely with the National Park Service to protect the wild heritageand the future of protected areas. We advance the cause of environmental education andchampion the rights of the local communities, while encouraging responsible tourism as a tool tohelp protect this incredible gift that we have been left, the Osa Peninsula.

Mission Statement

Our mission is to promote the sustainable use of natural resources by assisting theconservation areas, the promotion of environmental education and

responsible tourism in Costa Rica.

In the last six years the Corcovado Foundation has successfully managed more than 45 programsand projects for the Osa. With this funding we have been able to pay for operating expenses,such as fuel, food and equipment for the six protected areas in the Osa Peninsula: includingCorcovado, Piedras Blancas and Ballena National Park, the Golfo Dulce Forestry Reserve, CanoIsland and Golfito Wildlife Reserve.

From March 2005 to July 2007, the Corcovado Foundation was chosen by the NatureConservancy Project to manage 67 employees for ACOSA , including 53 new park rangers. 55%of the total payroll of the Ministry of Environment in Osa.

On the other hand we have been also been working with Rainforest Alliance and Tourism Caresfor Tomorrow promoting sustainable tourism among hotels in the Osa Peninsula.

Last but not least, with a big effort to find funding, our organization has been using donationsfrom hotel guests and people that find us on the web; to implement our environmental education

program. This program includes a tree nursery, a turtle nursery and a recycling program. Thesupport of volunteers has been vital for this program.

This project started in 2003, when local people from the community of El Progreso, informed theCorcovado Foundation about the poaching of marine turtle nests as a common practice in thearea. They also complained about the substantial reduction of marine turtles nesting in the area.


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Marine Turtle Conservation Project in El Progreso Beach Background:

The reduction of the sea turtle populations in regions such as the Peninsula de Osa is a reflectionof the situation that these reptiles face worldwide. Preliminary studies have shown a low numberof nesting events in El Progreso beach in Drake Bay. A great contrast to the locals assertionthat there were a greater number of turtles that came to lay their eggs on this beach in previousyears. According to some testimonies, three species Eretmochelys imbricata (Hawksbill/TortugaCarey), Dermochelys coriacea (Leatherback/Tortuga Baula) and Lepidochelys olivacea (OliveRidley/Tortuga Lora), represented the marine turtle nesting population. The Ridley is the lastspecies remaining and it is decreasing in numbers at an alarming rate.

Because of the above, the establishment of a program dedicated to the protection andrecuperation of the marine turtle population has become timely and essential. These marineturtles currently utilize this and other neighboring beaches, so therefore this program would alsocompliment the work of other projects developing in the Osa Peninsula (Peninsula de Osa)(Figure 1)

Currently, regions such as Drake Bay (Bahia de Drake) in the Osa Peninsula confront remarkablehuman population growth. This has brought, as a consequence, many changes including the lossof important habitat for wild species.

Because of these changes, we now find a decrease in the sea turtle population. According withthe research done by our organization in 2003, 2004, and 2005 the amount of nests poached wasin average 85%.


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This decrease seems to be the result of the turtle eggs poaching, destruction of nesting habitats by domestic animals, fishing with trammel nets and by shrimp boat, who drag their nets overany living beings they can gins. For these reasons, our organization considered that it wasnecessary to protect the beaches, where sea turtle nesting is reported.

In 2006 the Corcovado Foundation raised funding to start a marine turtle conservation project inEl Progreso Beach. With the support of volunteers, a local hotel owner -who hosts the project-and some small donations from friends, donors and NGOs this project survived two seasons(The marine turtle season goes from June to December 2006 and 2007).

The contributions of volunteers have been a great resource for theimprovement of the protection of themarine turtles in Drake Bay. They

perform tasks ranging from theweeding of the land where thegreenhouse is located up to thetransferring of nests from the beach.

One of the most serious problems thatthis project faces has been the local

extraction of turtle eggs for domesticconsumption or sold to bars asappetizers.

Local communities consider a god- given-right to utilize the turtle eggs,

as any other local natural resource. The Corcovado Foundation has had several meetings withthe community in order to alleviating these problems. Studying the main concerns of the people,it is clear that many of them consider the turtle eggs as an additional income that they expectevery year.

We have maintained an environmental education program for the communities of influence andwe have had two Turtle Festivals, to celebrate the program and the importance of itsconservation.

The Turtle Festivals (Festival de la Tortuga) held on November 2006 and 2007, were a bigsuccess because of the attendance of around 200 people all of whom enjoyed games, recreationalactivities, puppets plays, and baby turtle liberation.

As a more creative way to promote the conservation of the marine turtles in the area, theCorcovado Foundation started a program to promote the tourism development in the community


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of influence of the project, in order to create awareness of the importance of the marine turtles

and the rest of their natural heritage as a tourist attraction.

By providing some members of the local community with training in tourism and therefore anopportunity to benefit from the tourism industry, it is hoped that the local communities of ElProgreso, Los Angeles and Agujitas will take a more proactive approach to conserving the localnatural resources, specifically endangered species such as the sea turtles.

Project objectives and description:

The project named as Sea Turtle Hatchery and Community Tourism Development aims togenerate awareness in the local communities about the importance of turtle conservation forfuture generations, and for the interests of the local incipient tourism industry.

1. Promote the appropriation of the natural heritage concept among the local communities of ElProgreso and Agujitas

2. Reduce the poaching of turtle eggs and other natural resources, in the communities of ElProgreso and Agujitas.

3. Provide young people in the local communities of El Progreso and Agujitas the toolsneeded to get involved in the tourism supply of the area and benefit in a sustainable way ofthe natural resources of its community, such as the marine turtles and other local wild life.

Funding provided by the Humane Society worked as a matching fund for the Marine TurtleConservation Project to finance tourism training for the local communities of El Progreso, LosAngeles and Agujitas.

The volunteers will also receive two weekly English lessons, for a full year, which will enablethem to better serve English speaking tourists.

Finally, a portion of the grant will go towards maintenance and operative costs for the turtlehatchery program and the purchase of equipment required. This includes two-way portableradios, which can be used both to communicate during beach monitoring, and to facilitatearrangements of logistics for possible tourists visiting the area.


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The amount ofturtles thatreached the sea2006 was 4,533turtles, where in2007 the estimatedamount of littleturtles was 7,783turtles.

23 peoplecompleted thecourse andreceived acertificate ofparticipation .

Results and Outcomes1. Marine Turtle Conservation

Regarding the marine turtle conservation efforts the results are very tangible. The constant patrolling of volunteers on the beach and the environmental education campaign has started to bring results to the protection of the marine turtles in El Progreso Beach in Drake Bay.

Where in 2005, 85% of the turtle nests were poached during the season; in 2006 there was asignificant reduction of the amount of turtle nests lost to poachers: only 20%. Impressively in2007, the amount of turtle nests stolen were reduced to only 7,1%.

The amount of turtles that reached the sea 2006 was 4,533 turtles,where in 2007 the estimated amount of little turtles was 7,783 turtles.

One of the most important factors of this reduction was the increased presence of volunteers on the beach. Instead of one patrol a night, two patrols were completed per night. The amount of volunteers was alsohigher than the previous year; every patrol had three or four people per

patrol. This increased presence, both in quantity and quality,discouraged poachers to come to the beach during the nesting season.(Find full technical report in Annex #1)

2. Hospitality Course

The hospitality course was provided by theMerkaplan S.A. This company has extensiveexperience in providing training to tourism companiesin sustainability of the tourism operation anddevelopment of hospitality cultures.

The hospitality course consisted of three differentactivities: two introductive half days meetings inwhich the candidates were met. In these twomeetings, the facilitators researched the expectationsof the participants, their potential and their

involvement with the community and the turtle project.

24 people assisted later to the workshops that were held on January 19 th and January 20 th.

The first workshop was about aggressive hospitality and guest handling.The second part of the workshop or second day was a practice of the first


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day and an analysis of the tourism product and the importance of the natural attraction for Costa

Rica and particularly for the Osa. (Find text booklet in annex #2)

23 people completed the course and received a certificate of participation. (Annex 3 Certificateof participation) (Annex 4 list of participants).

3. English Lessons

The Nature Kids Foundation is a non profit organization dedicated to working with low-incomefamilies to develop the tools they need for self-reliant futures. Through English language andenvironmental education programs, NatureKids collaborates with families to bring viable and

affordable education to communities throughout Costa Rica.

They currently operate two English language schools in Costa Rica-one in Salitral, Santa Ana just outside of San Jose , and one in Drake Bay on the Osa Peninsula

The NatureKids Foundation and the Corcovado Foundation are joining forces to provide ofEnglish lessons to the community in El Progreso. NatureKids will supply an experiencedEnglish teacher, materials, and school books. By removing the language barrier and providingtraining in tourism, locals will have access to the tourist market and will have incentive to protecttheir natural resources. .

The program will run for one year, January 7 th 2008 January 7 th 2009. Classes will be heldMonday and Thursday 2:30 4:30 p.m.

This will be an introductory to basic oral languageclass with emphasis on Drake Bay tourismvocabulary. NatureKids is a communication basedlanguage program. Students will be working fromtext books and with written material however theemphasis will be based upon oral communication.Students will be working in two books, Intune andSide by Side all books and workbooks will be

provided by NatureKids. Levels of education will be assessed monthly to record the level of participation, communication, pronunciation, andknowledge of workbook material. All records will be available to The Corcovado Foundation.

There are 16 students enrolled to take the course and attendance will be recorded each class todocument participation throughout the year.


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The Corcovado Foundation will used $1200 donated by the Humane Society to pay for the salaryof the English Teacher. By January 2008, $400 initial payment has been made, according to theletter of understanding signed between the Nature Kids Foundation and the CorcovadoFoundation (Annex 5). $350 US ($200 for transportation and $150 for transportation) are also inthe budget to pay for unforeseen additional expenses, such as special transportation needs due to

bad weather (i.e. boat transfers to El Progreso).


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Future challenges for the project

The Sea Turtle Hatchery and Community Tourism Development project is facing a new year andsome of its components are in need of support to maintain its operation.

Turtle conservation efforts

The turtle conservation efforts, which include night patrols and the building of a turtle nursery,imply a big amount of expenses: from food supplies to batteries for the flash lights. The turtlenursery operates from the beginning of July to the end of December and it host around 10 to 15volunteers that dedicate their nights to patrol the beach, patrol the turtle nursery and visit thenearby schools with the environmental education program and organize the Turtle Festival. Theseason cost of maintaining these people is between $5,000 and $6,000 USD for the wholeseason.

Other expenses of this project are the salaries of the coordinators and the technical supervisors ofthe project which add up to around $5,000 USD per season.

In 2007, the turtle conservation project per se , had a total cost of a little bit less than $14,000USD from July to December.

Community Tourism Development

In 2008 the community tourism development project, started with 4 trainings related withhospitality and guest relations. The training also included clue information about the opportunitythat tourism provides for the area, and the importance of nature as a tourism attraction.

The project will continue this year, 2008, with English lessons that will extend from January2008 to January 2009.

In order to maintain this project and extend the knowledge of the local community in the tourismsector and to help them participate as suppliers, some additional courses should be scheduled.Courses such as food handling, marketing and basic business administration theory will comehandy to these people that are now exploring their options in this market. The costs of thesecourses in the area could range around $1000 and $1500 USD per course depending on the deptof each of these courses.

A second year of English lessons could also be of use for the people that engaged in this firststage of the project. In total to maintain and see results of the project a total amount of $6000USD need to be raised.

project sea turtle hatchery community tourism development

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